The executor of a will is the person the will appoints to deal with the estate: gather in the assets, pay the debts and taxes, and distribute what is left to the beneficiaries. In England and Wales the executor usually needs a grant of probate first. The application fee is £526 where the estate is worth more than £5,000, and no more than four people can be named on the grant. Any inheritance tax is due by the end of the sixth month after the death, and the full account (form IHT400, where needed) within 12 months.
Who can be an executor
An executor is whoever the will names. It is common to appoint a spouse or adult children, a friend, a solicitor or a professional firm. Appointing two or more spreads the work and protects against one of them dying or losing capacity first.
Where there is no will, or the will names no executor who can act, there is no executor. Someone else must apply for letters of administration and act as administrator instead, in an order set by the court rules. That situation is covered in our guide to the intestacy rules.
If you do not want to act
Being named does not oblige you to take on the role. There are two ways to step back:
- Renounce. Give up the right to act altogether. A renunciation can only be retracted with the leave of a district judge or registrar, and only in exceptional circumstances once a grant has been made to someone entitled in a lower degree;
- Have power reserved. Let the other executors apply, while keeping the right to join in later. The executors who apply must give notice to the one whose power is reserved.
Decide early. It is far simpler to renounce or reserve power before you have started dealing with the estate's assets.
Applying for probate
The grant of probate is the court's confirmation that the executors have authority to deal with the estate. Banks and investment managers will normally ask to see it before releasing significant assets. It is not always needed: if the person who died held only small savings, or owned property as joint tenants so that it passed automatically to the survivor, probate may be unnecessary.
Before applying, the executor must value the estate and deal with inheritance tax. If the estate owes inheritance tax, or is not an "excepted estate", its value must be reported on form IHT400, and you cannot apply for probate until you have done so and received a unique code from HMRC. Some payment towards the tax is usually needed before the grant is issued, which is why many estates use the deceased's own bank accounts to pay HMRC directly. Our guide to form IHT400 covers that account in detail.
The probate fee is £526 for estates over £5,000, at the level set from 13 July 2026, and nothing for estates of £5,000 or less. Extra official copies cost £2 each if ordered with the application and £16 each later, and most estates need several. Grants are usually issued within 12 weeks of the application.
The executor's job, step by step
- Secure and value the estate. Identify every asset and liability at the date of death: property, accounts, investments, pensions, business interests, debts and any gifts made in the seven years before death;
- Deal with inheritance tax. Work out whether tax is due against the £325,000 nil-rate band and any other allowances. Tax is due by the end of the sixth month after death, and late payment carries interest. Tax on property and certain business assets can be paid in ten annual instalments;
- Obtain the grant. Apply for probate, then collect in the assets;
- Pay debts. Settle the funeral, debts and administration expenses;
- Deal with income tax and capital gains tax. The estate pays tax on income such as rent and interest, and on gains from selling assets, during the administration period, and the executor reports these to HMRC;
- Prepare estate accounts and distribute. Pay the legacies, then the residue, and keep a record showing how every figure was reached.
Before distributing, many executors place a notice under section 27 of the Trustee Act 1925 in The Gazette and a local newspaper. After the notice period, which must be at least two months, the executor can distribute having regard only to claims they know about, and is protected from personal liability to creditors who did not come forward. Distributing early without that protection leaves the executor personally exposed, as explained in our guide to dealing with an estate before probate.
Executors' liabilities
An executor can be personally liable if the estate is not administered properly. Paying beneficiaries before tax and debts are settled, undervaluing assets for inheritance tax or selling assets carelessly can all leave an executor having to make good the shortfall. The safeguards are straightforward: keep estate money in a separate executorship account, agree with any co-executors how decisions and payments will be authorised, take professional valuations, keep records, and hold back enough to cover tax until HMRC has confirmed the position.
Beneficiaries can sometimes rearrange what they receive after the death using a deed of variation, which may change the inheritance tax the executor has to pay. Executors should be told early if one is planned.
Acumon acts for executors on the financial side of an estate: valuations, inheritance tax accounts, the estate's income tax and capital gains tax, and estate accounts. Our probate accountant service can take on the whole administration or support executors who prefer to handle the legal steps themselves.